By Cristina Roca 
 

Unione di Banche Italiane SpA has told the Italian market authority that it believes a public exchange offer for its shares--launched by larger rival Intesa Sanpaolo SpA--has become ineffective due to the coronavirus pandemic, it said on Tuesday.

The Italian lender said the pandemic constitutes a "material adverse change," or MAC, a condition that would render Intesa's bid ineffective.

Intesa "should have promptly expressed itself on whether it was waiving this condition," UBI said in a press release issued in response to a report by Italian business newspaper Il Sole 24 Ore.

UBI denied the report's allegation that the MAC occurred due to a deterioration of its financial and credit profile. "The recently published figures for the first quarter of 2020, have confirmed the solidity of UBI Banca's operating results and its financial position as well as the quality of its assets," the company said.

Italy's Intesa in February launched a surprise all-share takeover bid for UBI, valued at the time at $5.3 billion. The combination would create Italy's largest bank. Late in March, Intesa said it was pressing ahead with the takeover bid for UBI despite the pandemic.

 

Write to Cristina Roca at cristina.roca@dowjones.com; @_cristinaroca

 

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

May 20, 2020 06:14 ET (10:14 GMT)

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